What We Do

A major component of the Beaver Watershed Alliance effort (Alliance) is to provide outreach and education programming necessary to provide residents of Northwest Arkansas with the tools necessary to help protect Beaver Lake. Increasing population growth and development are likely going to occur at a rapid pace over the next few decades, and how we meet these new opportunities and associated demands will have an impact on our drinking water supply. Sediment and phosphorus are currently the two pollutants of highest concern with regard to the quality and cost of our drinking water.

The Beaver Watershed Alliance is working with local governments and other nonprofits to reduce the amount of sediment entering streams, improve fish habitat, and reduce flooding – an essential service to local communities. Because Beaver Lake supplies 1 in 6 Arkansans (nearly a half-million people) with clean drinking water and provides over forty million tourism and recreation dollars for the local economy, the Alliance developed this quarterly speaker series to share the rationale behind investing in watershed protection that will benefit the future of our entire region.

Land Management Practices are voluntary actions you can take on your property, no matter how big or small of acreage you have. The Alliance staff and partners specialize in Forestry, Ecology, Streamside Management, Urban Landscapes, and Agriculture and can bring subject expertise through public workshops, and share online, in-person, and in the field. These focused workshops are intended to bring solutions to the table and guide landowners, cities, and counties through the process of implementation. The Alliance is in place to assist from start to finish!

Check out the calendar for a list of upcoming Land Management Practices Workshops.

Over 2,800 miles of streams network and weave through the Beaver Lake watershed area. All waterways in this basin eventually end up in Beaver Lake, our drinking water source for half a million Arkansans. The Ozarks are full of a variety of types of surface waterways, from intermittent to ephemeral streams, springs to creeks to rivers, to our lakes – we have abundant water resources in the Northwest Arkansas region.

With these abundant water resources, comes challenges of streambanks eroding away and riparian loss. Riparians are the lands adjacent to waterways, which hold the soils in place and help stabilize streambanks. When they are removed or reduced in area, the consequences equal erosion, land loss, habitat loss and a host of other issues that are negative for water quality, including algae growth. Erosion is when soils are washed away, downstream. The buildup of sediments downstream are hard to reverse or repair, as they accumulate and create dead zones.

These challenges cause problems not only for landowners, but also for the entire region. Landowners lose valuable land and workable soils, drinking water treatment cost go up to treat excess sediment and nutrients, aquatic life declines due to loss of oxygen in muddy waters, to name a few.

The Alliance seeks to proactively prevent these issues before they worsen. If you live along a creek, stream, river or lake, our staff can assist in not only addressing the issues you may be having with erosion, but also help look at preventable measures you can take to ensure your streamside properties are intact for years to come. Contact the Alliance for a free site visit.

Streamside Resources:

• Watershed Conservation Resource Center
• Riparian Guide for the Ozarks
• Streamside Permits
• Add more…

Northwest Arkansas is the 6th fastest growing metropolitan area in the country (verify). The Ozarks is quicky becoming a destination for visitors and those looking to call it home. As urban development increases, and more roofs, parking lots and roads are built, there are rain runoff challenges that come with it. Northwest Arkansas has the opportunity to engage in SmartGrowth, a term coined to provide frameworks that allow for development and water quality to work in tandem.

As a homeowner, apartment dweller, renter, or developer, you have options available to address water runoff on your property. There are voluntary landscape practices you can install to reduce flooding, reduce erosion and redirect water to where it needs to go, in the ground.

Through Site Assessment Plans for residents and developers, and Comprehensive Management Plans for communities, the Alliance provides technical assistance to help address urban water challenges.

Resources for Urban/Residential Properties

• Native Plant guide
• Rain Gardens
• Bioswales
• Green Parking Lots
• Development Fact Sheet
• Rain Harvesting
• Low Impact Development Manual
• Add more….

Agriculture is Arkansas’ largest industry, adding around $16 billion to the state’s economy annually (AR Farm Bureau). Pasturelands play an important role in the Ag economy, and farmers have the opportunity to help improve water quality through land management techniques while gaining efficiencies and reducing costs.

When soil stays in the field, it not only provides better soil for crop production but also reduces sediment entering the water table. You can reduce erosion through cover crops, no-till, and crop rotations.

• Enhanced management of the use of fertilizers and pesticides to keep them on the field or pasture can reduce costs as well as the potential for loss. Nutrient management is one of the best things you can do for water quality and your bottom line.
• Infield practices like filter strips and riparian buffers can help reduce runoff, but filtering the runoff to remove sediment, chemicals, and waste can improve downstream water quality.
• Preventing animal waste from entering water sources is a key way to protect water quality. This can be achieved through prescribed grazing, waste storage, and waste management. (Source Farmers.Org)

The Alliance works closely with local Soil and Water Conservation Districts, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Services, Farm Bureau, and state and federal programs to provide technical assistance to Agricultural producers. Contact us for a free Site Assessment Plan and technical assistance to aid you in selecting land management practices. Stay informed of upcoming workshops and funding opportunities by signing up for our Enews or attending an event.

Agricultural Resources

• NRCS
• FSA
• Soil and Water Districts
• Pasture Aeration
• Nutrient Surplus Area map
• UAEX Fact Sheets